Some of the earliest items document Allen’s high school years at Western State High School. This charter school was operated by Western State Normal School. Western State Normal School later became Western Michigan University, and the high school was renamed University High School. Western State High School materials include several folders of course notes and essays, grouped by pertinent course name, a 1930 student handbook and directory, a 1931 yearbook, a 1932 commencement program and a list of students from Allen’s graduating class of 1932. Some correspondence documents Allen’s search for an institution of higher learning. For at least one summer of his high school years, Allen attended the National High School Orchestra and Band Camp in Interlochen, Michigan. The Interlochen documentation includes correspondence with parents, camp report card, and publications.
In the 1930s, Allen attended Amherst College, Kalamazoo College and then Columbia Law School. Many of his activities for these years are documented in correspondence files. A separate Kalamazoo College file includes course transcripts, report cards, a brochure on the college, a brochure on the Sigma Rho Sigma fraternity (of which Allen was a member), a Sigma Rho Sigma dance card, a Pi Kappa Alpha fraternity membership card, a 1934 commencement program, a 1936 commencement invitation and lyrics of homecoming songs.
Allen’s World War II experiences are documented mainly through correspondence. Allen family members constitute most of the correspondents. In the letters, Allen provides detailed accounts of his wartime service. He describes his experiences in domestic army camps and in the European Theatre of Operations. He is often unable to provide specific information (such as his exact whereabouts or troop movements) due to wartime censorship. However, he does often comment at length on his general surroundings and his encounters with European civilians and other military personnel. He sometimes muses at length on the war’s progress and/or speculates on future events. During the war, Allen served as an assistant Judge Advocate to the Third Army’s 94th Division. He sometimes comments on his job duties, but usually not at length. Allen ran for a Kalamazoo city commissioner seat in 1945, when he was still stationed in Europe. Some contemporary materials allude to this situation.
Allen served as Kalamazoo mayor in the years 1951-1959. This series includes letters of congratulations on his 1951 election victory. A folder labeled “Mayor of Kalamazoo” includes a copy of Allen’s 1951 inaugural address, an undated “Statement Concerning City Plan for Township Sewage,” a 1955 paper entitled “The Problem of the Medically Indigent in Kalamazoo,” some statistics on the 1951 Kalamazoo city election, a schedule for the 1959 Kalamazoo Mall dedication and a letter (written in French) from the mayor of Ville de Chateaubriant, France.
From 1961 to 1973, Allen served as a Michigan constitutional convention (or “Con Con”) delegate, then as State Controller, State Budget Director and a legal advisor in Governor William G. Milliken’s administration (1969-1981). This series contains few documents from this period. Con Con materials include an immediate (1962) retrospective article by Allen, a convention handbook copy that contains Allen’s handwritten notes and some reunion and retrospective materials from later years. Files on “State Controller” and “State Budget Director” consist mainly of speeches and essays, with some financial information and a position description also included. The general correspondence files for these years document some of Allen’s personal activities
In 1973, Governor William Milliken appointed Allen to the Court of Appeals. His term began in 1974, and he remained in the Court of Appeals until his retirement in 1987. A Court of Appeals correspondence file contains letters on several topics. These include personnel matters, financial matters, professional conferences and speeches. In some letters, Allen discusses court cases and legal issues with fellow legal professionals and scholars. Other files in this series document Allen’s 1980 reelection campaign and 1983-1984 discussions on court redistricting legislation. The file labeled “Reports and Meeting Minutes” contains statistics on filings and dispositions.
